Sweet Afton
by bookworm2u
Summary: Fleeing an abusive mother for the sake of her retarded sister, 18yearold Kaye finds herself in Tulsa, with the Curtises and their friends as neigbors.
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Fleeing an abusive home for the sake of her retarded sister, an 18-year-old girl finds herself in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with the Curtis's and their friends for neighbors.

Sweet Afton

Chapter One

Leaving Home

Kaye ran around the house insanely. If she was late for work again, she knew the boss would fire her for sure. But she couldn't leave Afton alone. Mrs. Johnson, who usually watched the baby, had gone out of town for the week, and had only just called that morning. Now there was no one for her to leave Afton with, and she couldn't stay by herself. She couldn't talk, could barely walk, and would break down into shaking fits if she got too cold. She was desperately small; the four year old looked half her age. Couldn't learn, couldn't go to school, Kaye did not know what she could do with the girl for the day.

Frantic, Kaye walked past the couch, where her mother lay passed out. The air stank of alcohol. Carefully, Kaye stepped over an empty liquor bottle, before picking it up and throwing it away. "Hurt the baby if your not careful," she whispered angrily to the air, which seemed to be the only one who would listen. She took another bottle dangling half empty from her mother's hand, and poured the rest down the sink.

Kaye didn't have a choice. She took the baby to her bedroom, which had to be the most childproof room in the house. The little girl let out an ear-piercing shriek, which was her only mode of communication.

"I'm sorry," Kaye said in reply. "This is the only thing I know to do with you. I'll be back as soon as I can." Kay left the room, then returned with several sippy-cups filled with water and a huge bowl of cheerios, so that Afton would not starve in her absence. She had to keep her fed, lest she lose the small amount of weight she had to put on the "baby."

She closed the door behind her, praying the Afton would be okay while she was gone, then left the house, practically running to work at the grocery store.

----

She was home at five, the soonest she could get someone to cover for her shift. What she saw left her mouth open in horror.

Her mom had found yet another bottle, and was now passed out on the couch. 

Big surprise, Kaye thought.  
Then she noticed the sobbing coming from the corner.

Afton was lying there, covered in dried blood. Oozing red welts covered her body, and deep scratched marked her arms.

Kaye instantly put together what had happened. In a drunken rage, her mother had attacked her sister.

She gathered the baby in her arms, and rocked her back and forth, singing.

_Flow gently sweet Afton,  
Among thy green bray  
Flow gently I'll sing thee,  
A song in thy praise.  
My Mary's asleep by thy murmuring stream.  
Oh flow gently sweet Afton,  
Disturb not her dream._

This couldn't happen again. Kaye wouldn't let it happen again. Gingerly, as not to hurt her, she set Afton on her hip. "Come on, we got work to do."

She got out a backpack, a duffel bag, and a suitcase. Kaye filled them full of their clothes. She gathered anything she could find of value, and with baby on her hip, went to the pawnshop. It didn't give her much money, but at least it was something, which she stuffed in her pocket. Then she headed to the bank.

She had a fair amount saved up. She had begun working by the time she was fourteen, as soon as she was able, just to be able to get out of her screwed up house. She never spent more than she could help, just the bear essentials to provide them with food and clothing. But not only did she empty her own account, but her college savings as well.

Her life didn't always used to be this screwed up. Once upon a time she had lived a normal life, with both parents to provide for her, with a bright future and a good college ahead of her.

But one day, that light dimmed.

With all their earthly possessions in her arms, Kaye and her sister went to the bus depot, where she got a ticket. Children under three rode free. But that was the only advantage to Afton's small size.

At first, Kaye didn't know where to go. She didn't really have anywhere to go. She had never heard nor cared about a place called Tulsa, Oklahoma, and she figured no one else did either.

So no one would ever be able to find them.  
She hopped on the bus, hoping that her troubles wouldn't follow. But Afton would let out a constant shriek, disturbing the few other passengers. They did not know about their life, what they had gone through in only a few short years. 

Quietly, Kaye began to sing, so that just the little girl could hear.

_Flow gently sweet Afton,  
Among thy green bray,  
Flow gently I'll sing thee  
A song in my praise…_

-----

So it's been a while. But I'm BAAAACK! Okay, I know its short, but this is just the beginning…. I'm not too sure where I'm going, so bare with me. Rate and review please.

Bookworm


	2. A Place To Stay

Disclaimer: Darn. I forgot this last time. Oops. Well, anyways. I do not own the Outsiders. S.E. Hinton does. Nor do I own the song Sweet Afton, which is a traditional Celtic song, which belongs only to the people of Celtic heritage. In English: I have no clue who does own it, but I don't.

Chapter Two

A Place to Stay

Kaye didn't know where they'd go once they got off in Tulsa. She didn't have friends or family there, so she and Afton were all alone. There was nowhere to go, but anywhere was better than home.

She placed the baby on the ground, letting her stretch her legs, holding her hand all the while to keep her out of the streets. All she knew was that she wouldn't be staying on that side of town long.

Kids a lot higher up in class than she were driving around in convertible cars, obviously richer than she could ever hope to be. They gave her looks as they passed. Looks that said that in their minds, she was no better than dirt. Each time, she quickly adverted her eyes. She had seen this before. It wasn't anything new. She supposed the social class thing was around all across the country, that it wasn't just her old city that did it. She certainly wasn't rich, and she looked as poor as she was. Shabby clothes, threadbare and worn, which she kept as plausible as possible, scuffed shoes and a worn expression had already branded her as one of the poor folk here, even though she had only been here for a matter of hours. She kept walking, stopping for nothing. She didn't want a fight. Not with Afton with her. She did not want her to get hurt.

She kept her eyes out for a place to stay, a room for rent or an apartment to stay in, but everything around was too expensive for her to even think about living in. So she kept on moving, hoping that there would be someone somewhere who would take pity on her.

The farther east she traveled, the cheaper things seemed to become, and for that, Kaye was thankful. Maybe if she came to the edge of the city, there might be some affordable lodging in the area.

She made her way down the sidewalk into a rather rundown neighborhood. The houses were tiny and looked as though a feeble wind could blow them over, but Kaye figured that if one of them was offering a room for rent, she could probably afford to rent it for a time while she looked for a job.

Kaye examined each house she passed, looking for a "For Rent" sign among the yards, but found nothing.

What she did find was even better.

It was a "For Sale" sign in front of the house, and the price was cheaper than she could have ever dreamt. It was as though the people who lived there wanted to _give_ the house away to anyone who would take it.

But then, Kaye decided, not many people would. It was about as run down as anyone could make it, as though someone had purposefully taken a sledge hammer to the fence and broken the windows as a joke, just to see how desperate someone had to be to buy it.

But she _was_ desperate, she realized. Besides, the damage wasn't _too_ beyond repair. Nothing a hammer, some nails, and a couple cans of paint would not fix.

She decided she would call the number on the sign.

------

As it turned out, the house was government property now, and they would do anything in their power to get rid of it. Kaye was even able to negotiate a deal. For a thousand bucks more, she and Afton would actually be able to keep all the existing furniture in the house, which for Kaye was better than dandy. Even if she had been able to afford an upper-class room or apartment, there was no way she could make enough money to furnish it. This was better than her wildest dreams. As soon as she signed the lease papers, she and Afton were in there cleaning.

It actually reminded Kaye a bit like her old house. There was a pretty good detritus of old bottles and trash hidden under the furniture, and there was about an inch of dust that coated everything in sight.

She had bagged six huge bags of trash in the bedroom alone, and was dragging them to the curbside, Afton following behind her, when she spotted a boy with rusty colored sideburns ambling without a care down the walk.

Happy to see a new face, Afton ran out into the road to meet him, Kaye screaming, "NO! Afton, get back here this minute!"

She ran to catch the child before she was run over by some car not obeying the speed limit, but the boy got there first. He scooped up the child in his arms. Kaye met him there, her voice loud and high as she shouted, "Afton, you do that again and I swear! If you were not already dead I'd kill you myself!"

"This your baby?" the boy asked.

Afton gave one of her trademark high pitched screeches. "You tell him," Kaye answered. "Yeah, she's mine."

She reached out to take her back, but the child refused. Instead, she grabbed a fistful of the boy's shirt (which oddly enough had a picture of Mickey Mouse on it) and held it in her small hand.

"Sorry," Kaye apologized. "She likes your shirt."

"No problem. The name's Two-bit by the way. Two-bit Matthews."

"Kaye. Kaye Smathers."

"Ain't seen you around here before. You new to these parts?"

"Yeah. Just kinda drifted in somehow. Figured this was as good a place as any to settle down."

"Well, if your new, you have to meet the gang. Come on, we're just down the street."

"No," said Kaye. He seemed friendly enough, but she'd lived long enough to know that you don't just randomly walk with a random person to meet his gang. "I'd hate to intrude on y'all. Besides, I have a monstrous amount of cleaning to do. We just got here and the house is a wreck."

"Nonsense. If you smile and act all pretty I'm sure they might actually volunteer to help. Hell, even _I _might hang around to help. Come on!"

And with that she was dragged down the road to a small house she had seen only in passing.

Two-bit threw open the screen door and shouted inside, "NEW NEIGHBORS! Come on y'all! Say your howdy-do's." Kaye couldn't help but smile.

"What the hell are you yellin' about, Two-bit?" One of them asked. Four more boys had piled into the kitchen, ranging in age from probably 15 to 23 if she had to guess. But the one she noticed the most was the one standing tall and silent in the back, with eyes the color of ice and a hard face, worn by worry. It was a look she knew only too well. She had seen in impersonating herself as she looked in the cracked bathroom mirror.

"Glory!" She shouted. "All y'all live here."

"Kinda," one of them, with a movie-star presence to him said, "I'm Sodapop Curtis, and these are my brothers Darry," he gestured to the oldest, "and Ponyboy." Once more he pointed, this time to the youngest of the group. "My best friend Steve, and I see Two-bit already kidnapped you, so that's everybody. They hang around so much they might as well live here."

It was Darry's turn to speak now, though he looked rather uncomfortable as he tried to offer some hospitality. "Don't just stand there in the doorway. May I offer you and your daughter something to drink? I believe we have some chocolate milk around here somewhere…."

"My dau…?" Kaye burst into hysterical laughter. Everyone else stared. Finally, she regained a little of her composure, at least enough to say, "She's not my daughter! She's my sister!"

Everyone, even Darry, started to laugh, and the tension was immediately broken. Kaye and Afton (despite her constant shrieks) were even invited to stay for a fun meal of blue mashed potatoes and chicken for dinner. As soon as the food was uncovered and all her new friends seated around the table, Kaye knew that she was going to like living in Tulsa. 

------

A while later, Kaye was forced to politely excuse her and Afton, as their house was still not fit for habitation. As soon as she left, excited conversation broke out among the guys.

"She's nice," said Ponyboy. "I like her. The baby's pretty okay too."

"And pretty," commented Two-bit. "You think she's pretty, Darry?"

"Huh?" asked Darry from the sink, where he was washing dishes. "Oh yeah, she's nice lookin'."

"It's obvious Darry likes her," Sodapop shouted, who was on the floor, wrestling with Steve. "First time he's smiled in… well… forever."

"Say that again little buddy and it'll be ME your wrestling with, not Steve." Then, cautiously, "What makes you say that?"

"Come on, Darry. Admit it. You couldn't keep your eyes off her."

Ponyboy glanced quickly at Darry. He was sure he and Soda would have it out till Soda surrendered, saying that he was just kidding. But all Pony saw was the flicker of a brief smile on Darry's face before he turned back to the dishes.

----------------

Okay, finally, a little longer. Hope you liked, tell me if this is getting to Mary-Sue. I've never written a fic with girls in it, so I could use some advice.

RATE AND REVIEW PLEASE,

Bookworm


	3. Up on the Housetop

Disclaimer: I only own Kaye and Afton. And that's it.

Chapter Three  
Up on the Housetop

The guys hung around Kaye's house almost as often as they hung around at the Curtises. She welcomed them there, and despite Afton's "difficulties" which she eventually had to explain to them, they seemed to love her as much as she loved them. Everybody kinda came and went freely, stopping by the fridge if they were hungry, dumping any loose change in the jar Kaye kept by the door, just as Darry did. Rarely were she and Afton ever alone, and Kaye liked that. She had never really ever had people she could depend on, and the feeling was nice. The guys had actually helped her get the house fixed for human habitation, just as Two-bit said. And she had to admit, it was a pretty funny thing to see several grown guys with dust rags slung across their shoulders and scrub brushes in hands. But she had to draw the line when Two-bit showed up with a feminine floral print apron over one of his Mickey shirts and a huge squirt bottle of bleach. Personally, she wouldn't trust him with anything that had a "Warning: Do Not Ingest," "Do Not Get In Eyes" or basically a "This Is Not A Toy" label on it.

-----One week later

"Hey Darry!" Kaye called through the open door of the Curtis house. "Can I borrow a hammer and some nails? Just for a minute, there's some stuff around the house that needs some fixin'."

"Sure, take whatever you want. It's all in the garage!"

"Good. Asking to borrow your ladder might have been a bit awkward!" Behind her Afton gave a shriek, which her sister took to be a laugh.

Darry finally appeared, holding a broom in his hand. "What on earth do ya need the latter for? It's only a one story house, no high light bulbs to replace. You're not thinkin' about goin' up on that roof are ya?"

"Yup. There's a terrible leak up there. In Afton's room of all places. Discovered it the other night when we had that storm. Poor kid nearly caught her death of cold with all the cold air comin' in through the hole."

"You can't go up there!" Darry demanded. "No one's been up there in years! What if the roof's rotten? You could fall through the house?"

"Nah," she said. "You'd only fall through till you hit the attic floor. I already been up there. The floor's solid enough."

"No," said Darry. It's too dangerous."

"What do you expect me to do then, Mr. Know-it-all? I can't just let the roof leak."

They were already in the garage, Darry helping her carry the ladder while Afton toddled behind.

"I know, I know. At least let _me_ do it. I do it for a living. At least I know what to do if I were to come tumblin' through your house," he declared.

"What, did you have special roof-tumbling lessons or something, to keep you safer than anyone else while falling through a house?" she asked with raised eyebrows.

"I did actually," he said with one of his rare grins. She realized that they could be as enticing as Sodapop's. Probably more beautiful, if you think about it, as they were rarer. Like a diamond.

"Oh?"

"It basically involves yelling as you fall, then screaming for help." He winked at her, and before she could stop him he was already up the latter and on the roof, hammer in hand along with a plank to cover the damaged bit of the roof.

----

"Hey, where's Darry? Ain't it his day off?" Soda asked Ponyboy as he came in the house after his shift at the DX had ended.

"He's on her roof now," Ponyboy answered with a mischievous grin.

"Whose roof?"

"Kaye's. Go see for yourself."

Sodapop stepped onto the porch and looked across the street and a few houses down. Sure enough he saw two forms sitting on the roof of what used to be Johnny's house.

"Well I'll be damned," Soda said to himself, before shaking his head and going back inside. He wondered how long it would last.

-----

Kaye had laid Afton down for a nap after Darry was done with his hammering, then she went back outside.

"Roof looks stable enough to me," she said casually.

"It is. I'm surprised how well it's held up."

"Then you would not object to me joining you up there." Before Darry could say anything, she was up there beside him.

"Thanks," she said. "For everything. I doubt I could get along here without you guys."

"It's nothin'. I'll see if I can snag some extra roofin' tomorrow and we can get the roof fixed permanently."

"Thanks."

They sat up there in silence for a while, saying nothing. They didn't have to.

Finally, Darry stretched and said, "Better get home and get supper started, or else no one will have anything to eat tonight. You comin' tonight?"

"Wouldn't miss it."

Okay, I really don't like this chapter, but I'm gonna post it anyways. But I promise you, this is just filler, cause I'd really like to make this story more than five chapters long. More info about Afton comin' up, since this story is _supposed_ to kinda be about her, and Kaye might actually get a job! And who gets to be Afton's new baby sitter? Stay tuned to find out.

I'm so excited, 10 reviews after only 2 chapters, that has to be like a record for me. Keep it up if you will, since it makes me so happy. And it encourages me to post sooner, instead of waiting months. So yeah, please review.

And have a Merry Eve of Christmas Eve.

Bookworm


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